Queen's speech promises to 'raise aspirations' of the young

Gordon Brown's plans to meet the "rising aspirations" of the British people were set out in the first Queen's speech under his premiership.

The government promised improvements to education, housing, health care and children's services in today's speech.

A new education bill will raise the school leaving age to 18. The Queen said the government would "raise education standards and give everyone the chance to reach their full potential".

The speech also announced new rights to skills training for adults and draft legislation to reform apprenticeships.

There will also be a bill for children and young people, including those in care, to give "all children the best possible start in life".

In addition, the government has promised to help people achieve a "better balance between work and family life" and legislation will be introduced to claw back "unclaimed money in dormant bank accounts" for youth facilities and social investment.

The speech also included a bill on human embryology to ensure that Britain remains at the forefront of health research.

The bill to keep young people in education or training until 18 is aimed at achieving world class levels of skills and to bring about greater economic productivity and dramatic improvements to individual life chances.

The bill will introduce a requirement to remain in education or training beyond the current statutory leaving age, and implement recommendations from the Leitch Review to improve adult skills.

By 2013, all 17-year-olds, and by 2015, all 18-year-olds will participate in some form of education or training.

The bill will place a duty on young people to participate, and on parents and local authorities to make that sure they do, and employers will have to release young people one day a week for outside training.

Local authorities will have the duty and power to assess the education and training needs of young people aged 16 to 19 with special educational needs.

On adult skills, the Learning and Skills Council will have to provide courses to allow learners over the age of 19 to get functional literacy, numeracy and full level 2 qualifications, and learners aged 19 to 25 to attain a first full level 3 qualification for free.

The general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, Steve Sinnott, said the government was right to raise the leaving age to 18. "Sixteen year olds cannot afford to be outside education or employment. If they do, they face dead end lives," he said.

However, he stressed the need for the government to be careful that any sanctions did not backfire and "lead to the ghettoisation of those young people who will be the hardest to reach".

"The reforms also have to be thoroughly prepared for and funded. A repeat of the botched introduction of the school leaving age in the 1970's is not an option," he added.

"I urge the prime minister not to lose the opportunity this bill represents. It could be expanded to rid the education service of some of the worst mistakes of recent legislation as well as introducing new ideas."

Meanwhile, Stuart Turner, head of skills at the Working Links Group, which helps excluded young people get work, said: "Ensuring that education or training is compulsory for all 16 to 18-year-olds is a positive step at a time when the UK is facing a skills shortage.

"However, for this to be a real success specialist organisations like Working Links need to be involved in the process, working in partnership to ensure engagement with the potential NEET group at a younger age as many youngsters have already become disenchanted and fall out of the system before they are 16."